


Flashes of Innocence

by Yiffandquiff (princesslexi763)



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Anal Sex, College, Eventual Relationships, Explicit Sexual Content, Happy Ending, M/M, Nude Photos, Photography, Strangers to Lovers, nsfw blog
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-09-17
Packaged: 2019-07-13 14:49:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16020164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princesslexi763/pseuds/Yiffandquiff
Summary: Phil Lester was an aspiring photographer, trying to fine tune his skills in a black and white photography class. Cue Daniel Howell, the attractive male that walks in one day and captures Phil’s eyes. But Dan has a small secret, he needs help. He runs a Tumblr blog and he needs someone to shoot his photos for him. But there’s a catch that Phil doesn’t know right away. Dan runs a NSFW porn blog and he’s asking Phil to help him recreate authentic photos.





	Flashes of Innocence

**Author's Note:**

> This fic came to me when I was reading a lot of these photography au’s and a lot of them had to do with Dan being a model and Phil photographing him or the other way around where Phil is a model. And all of these au’s caught my eye because I thought it’d be fun to write my own! I hope this comes off well, I really like what I did with it. Hopefully you all will too! Happy reading! :)

The first time Phil Lester saw Daniel Howell, it was during their 2:30 black and white photography class. He was sat at the table, digging through his backpack for a stray pen and his notebook. Then Dan walked in. 

Well, _walked_ wasn’t quite the write term. He _sauntered_ in. Phil swore that the moment his eyes landed on the dark curly hair that bounced in the wind and the ripped skinny jeans that hugged his legs, that everything else in the world ceased. All he could see was Dan. 

Of course, Phil didn’t know that Dan _was_ Dan until later on. But that didn’t stop Phil from looking for Dan every time he walked into class and took his seat. 

Every day, when the class ended just an hour later, Phil would try and psyche himself up to talk to Dan but he never did. He’d get so far as to follow Dan out the door and possibly try to stop him but he would always chicken out. 

Most of the time, his inadequacy to talk to this male that he so badly wanted to was beyond frustrating. He wished his anxiety didn’t get in the way and he could just go up to him. 

As luck would have it though, Phil would be introduced to him soon. 

When Phil walked into class on October 19th, the words ‘pair up for class today’ were written in black Expo marker on the whiteboard and they cut deep into Phil’s core. He hated random group activities and he especially hated them when he had no one else in the class that he knew. 

Most everyone paired up pretty quickly once inside the classroom but Phil remained partner-less until the last person walked in. Dan. He was the only person left without a partner being the last person in the class. 

Which meant the inevitable. 

“You don’t look like you have a partner.” Dan spoke to him, moving the seat next to Phil back and flopping down into it. He was breathing heavy, but Phil wasn’t one to question it until Dan waved it off. “I’m so sorry. I live on the hill and it’s such an awful walk here. I’m too out of shape for it.” 

Phil let out a chuckle and Dan followed it with one himself. 

“I’m Phil.” 

“Dan.” 

And that was how Phil got to officially know Dan’s name after nearly two months. 

The project for that day was just something simple. They were going to the studio as a class but each pair was going to practice taking portraits of the other person using their cameras. The goal was to take the light they were given and manipulate it to work with their subject. 

Dan wanted to go first at photographing so Phil took a seat on the stool in front of the white canvas behind him. Phil was tense. He wasn’t used to getting his photo taken and it was quite nerve-racking to now have the guy that he’s been crushing on since August taking photos of him. 

Dan would get him to laugh, telling him all of the stupid things he would do when he was drunk. Or he would tell him about all the reasons why ‘he’s a fail’ and Phil would laugh so hard that his tongue stuck out between his teeth. 

When they were done getting Phil’s shots, the professor walked around and checked out Dan’s camera. Phil was on edge, grabbing the stool on the side as he sat and waited for the approval. 

“What great shots!” She exclaimed, raising her arms up. “You two are naturals together.” 

She then patted Dan’s back and walked off to the next pair. 

They switched and Phil watched as Dan carefully set his camera behind his bag in the corner before walking over to the stool, taking a seat. 

He was wearing a white and black striped jumper, a few sizes too big if Phil had to guess and he paired it with a pair of ripped jeans. When he sat, the ends of his jeans rode up and shown his ankles, the skin there so soft and smooth to look at. 

“When you’re done assessing my outfit, can you tell me what you want me to do?” 

Phil quickly shot his eyes up, a furious blush dancing over his cheeks as warmth flooded them from being caught checking Dan out. But glancing at the way Dan smiled wide with his dimples showing and he folded his arms across his laugh and he leant back in a laugh gave Phil the impression that Dan didn’t mind. 

“Um…” Phil began, picking up his camera and turning it on. “Do whatever you feel is natural?” 

Dan stared at him and cocked an eyebrow. “I’m not a model.” He chuckled. “I’m not sure I know _how_ to act natural.” 

Phil wanted to roll his eyes and tell Dan to _just look how he always does with those damn brown doe eyes and dimples._ But instead, he just smiled. “Just laugh. Think of something funny that makes you laugh and just let go.” 

Dan started laughing instantly and it wasn’t even a fake laugh but a true laugh that was slightly high pitched but also comforting. It was happiness. It wasn’t forced. And when he laughed, Phil just kept snapping photos. 

Eventually, Dan complained that he had been laughing too much and he wanted to stop so Phil told him to do something he wanted to do instead. He wasn’t expecting Dan to pull out a set of wide doe eyes with slightly open pout as his sweater fell from his shoulder. 

And if Phil wasn’t already distracted by the pure sex that Dan was omitting, the line of dark hickeys that blazoned his collarbone and led down to below his sweater was enough to nearly set him off. 

_Fuck._

He got done with snapping the photos just as Dan pulled up the sleeve of his sweater and adjusted it’s bagginess on his thin frame. “Did you get any good shots?” 

Phil nodded and Dan smiled, a wide broad smile. “Can I see some of them?” He asked. 

Phil nodded again, this time quicker as he hopped over to where Dan was sat on the stool. He moved the display so that Dan could see it and he hit the arrow button to go from next picture to next picture. He would glance up occasionally to see if Dan was looking at the screen and he was pleased to see how happy Dan looked as he went through the photos. 

“You’ll have to send me these.” 

Phil looked up to face Dan. 

“You actually want these?” 

Dan nodded. “Yes! They turned out really well!” 

Phil felt a swoon in his chest at knowing that Dan liked his pictures enough to want him to send him those pictures. That had to be a good sign and even a good grade for him int he end too! 

The professor interrupted quickly to thank everyone for their hard work and then dismiss their class for the day. As Phil went to turn his camera off and head over to the corner of the studio to grab his backpack and camera case, he was stopped by a gentle hand on his forearm. 

“Would…this is a total shot in the dark by the way…but I run a blog and I need someone to help me take photos for it so would you willing to stop by my apartment in the hills one day just to help me out?” Dan asked, his voice soft. “You don’t have to and you’re probably super busy but…” 

“I’ll do it!” Phil said, his reply quick. “I’d love to do it actually.” 

Dan’s face lit up and his lips widened into another one of his smiles. “Thank you! Oh my gosh, this is gonna help me so much. I really do appreciate it.” 

“Do you want my number?” Phil asked, reaching into the front pocket of his jeans and taking hold of his phone. 

Dan nodded. “Yeah! I’ll give you mine and you can text me yours.” 

Phil pulled out his phone and handed it to Dan who quickly put his number into his contacts. 

“I have to run to my next class in Reilly but I’ll look forward to texting you later!” 

Phil watched Dan run to grab his things and then proceed to sprint out of the studio to do the five minute trek towards Reilly Hall. In the meantime, since Phil didn’t have to worry about another class that day, he stood back and thought about the hour that had just happened. 

1: he got to photograph Dan. 

2: he got Dan to like his photographs of him 

3: there were HICKEYS on Dan’s shoulder blade??? 

Phil didn’t really think of it until now but maybe his shot with Dan was over before they even began because if Dan had hickeys then…isn’t the logical thing that Dan was seeing someone? 

Phil didn’t want to get into it. Sure, Dan was attractive. But Phil doubted that he would actually see anything in him. Dan was a beautiful guy and he could have literally anyone he wanted and Phil didn’t really fit himself into the ‘anyone he wanted’ equation. 

He put away his camera and then grabbed his backpack, sending Dan a quick text with his name before shoving his phone into his pocket and hurrying out of the studio, on his way back to his dorm. 

Dan didn’t text him back until almost midnight. But when he did he just sent a quick picture of his schedule for classes and then told Phil he could work around any of those days. So Phil found that the weekend would be the easiest for them both and they planned the first photoshoot to happen on that next Saturday. 

Phil was nervous when he arrived to Dan’s apartment in the hills: a small section of on campus apartments that only the lucky kids got into. He knocked on the door for 311 and waited with his camera case in hand. 

He was expecting for Dan to obviously greet him at the door. But he wasn’t expecting Dan to be wearing just a lavish black robe when he opened said door. Phil taken aback. Was he early? Was he late? Was he interrupting something? 

“Oh hey!” Dan chimed out. “I was just setting up the backdrop for the shoot in my living room. You can come in and have a look at it.” 

Phil nodded and walked in, immediately being immersed in the all white walls of the living room with everything cleared out and stacked in the hallway. The scene that Dan had set up was a white canvas sheet taped against he wall and a grey fur rug on the floor that looked like you could run your fingers through it like a dog. But he wasn’t sure what this set up was supposed to be. 

“What do you think?” Dan asked, his hands pursed on his hips and his teeth gathering his bottom lip. “Do you think it works?” 

Phil shrugged. “If you’re going minimalist, it does.” 

Dan nodded. “Cool! So I figured that I could lay on the rug and then you can stand over me and take shots? Does that work?” 

Phil nodded. He’d never really done professor photography before but given that this was his field of study for college, he was super excited to finally test it out. Dan squealed a little bit before moving over to the rug and standing on it, his hands going to his robe. 

Phil watched as the belt holding the robe closed was undone and the soft plush was suddenly gathering at Dan’s feet. And there was Dan. Completely naked. Stood in front of Phil who’s jaw was at his chest. 

He was a gorgeous sight. Long limbs that were sun kissed and his body was littered with tiny freckles that looked like little pokes on his skin. He’s stomach was toned but also had a hint of softness. But the real distraction and beauty was his thick cock nestled flaccid, sat there in perfect waiting. 

Phil was completely and madly in love with Dan’s physique. 

Standing in front of him, Phil thought that Dan resembled a God. 

“Oh, shit!” Dan exclaimed, immediately making way to bend over and grab for his robe again. He picked it up and quickly covered his front with it. “Did I forget to tell you what this shoot is for?” 

Phil nodded because _yeah, Dan did._ And Phil felt like it was probably imperative that he should have known this prior to prepare for the thought of seeing his crush standing naked before him. 

“I run a porn blog!” Dan stated with a smile. “A Tumblr one! I post tasteful nude photos on it and sometimes sexual images to my followers.” 

Phil nearly choked. “Tasteful nudes?” 

Dan nodded. “Yeah! Like, some with me fully naked or some of me like, fucked out on the bed. Things like that.” 

Phil stood there shell-shocked. 

Dan then added. “Sometimes, I also get random Tinder hook ups to fuck me before the photos so it looks proper.” 

Phil was once again speechless. He had no clue what to say to literally any of that. 

Dan bit his lip, drawing it tight between his teeth. “You don’t want to do this anymore do you?” Dan asked with a disappointed sigh. “That’s fine! I should have told you and I just fucked this up. I’m sorry.” 

Phil quickly came to and shook his head. “No!” He said. “I don’t mind but it’s just…I just wasn’t expecting you to stand here naked in front of me.” 

Dan let out a nervous chuckle. “Why? See something you like?” 

If the blush had left Phil’s cheeks at any time, it was back again. Because Phil _was_ seeing something that he liked. _A lot_ of somethings that he liked actually. 

Dan let out a gasp and a laugh as he pointed at Phil. “You do!” He exclaimed. “Glad to know my body is up to your standards.” 

Phil quickly tried to shake that off as being wrong because Phil didn’t want Dan to feel objectified by him. That was the last thing he wanted. 

“No…No! I’m…” 

“Phil,” Dan quickly interrupted him, “you’re fine! I’m actually extremely flattered.” 

Phil just bit his lips into a tight line until a small smirk began to form on his lips. 

“So…do you wanna photograph me?” 

Dan’s voice was small, near whispered. Phil barely caught it before he registered what Dan had said. He could tell from Dan’s voice that he was insecure over this now, not sure if this what he wanted. Phil felt like that was his fault for the most part. 

He shouldn’t be making a big deal of this. They were both adults. Phil was a photography student. Taking nude photos of someone for the point of artistic value was something that’s been done for years, centuries even. Majority of classic paintings dating back to the beginning of history featured nude men and woman. Just look at Michelangelo’s David for instance. Phil could do this. He was helping Dan create art. 

“I’d love to.” 

Dan’s lips curled up into that wide smile that Phil’s come to fall in love with. And then he dropped his robe back to the ground and they began. 

It was hard for Phil to adjust at first to standing over Dan to take photos. Dan was just pure sex and everything about him was beautiful but sexy and seductive at the same time. 

Every little change he made with his body language spoke a million words and all of them were…frankly _naughty._ There were so many instances where Dan just gave off those bedroom eyes that Phil would fall into that would make him want to yank his own jeans down and just push himself into Dan, knowing that’s exactly what Dan wanted. 

But he contained himself and finished out Dan’s shoot for him. And when they were done, Phil moved away from Dan as he put his robe back on and asked to look through the photos. He quickly put his display on showed them to Dan. Seeing Dan’s eyes light up at the photos was enough to make Phil’s heart burst. 

“Phil, these are amazing!” Dan gasped out. “Oh my gosh, my followers are going to love these. Thank you so much!” 

Phil smiled at him. 

“Would you…would you like to continue doing this for me?” Dan asked. “I’d even pay you if you wanted me to.” 

Phil looked up from his camera and gazed into Dan’s eyes. “You wouldn’t have to pay me, Dan.” 

Dan shook his head. “No. You’re working for me. It’s only fair if…” 

“I want to do this.” Phil stated. “I want to photograph you. And I don’t want you to pay me.” 

“Are you sure?” 

Phil nodded. 

If Phil wasn’t already shocked with the events of the day, he’d surely have been surprised at him Dan lunged himself at him, nearly knocking him over as he enveloped him in a strong hug. 

It took Phil a few moments to realize that _Dan was hugging him_ and he should probably return the hug. So he wrapped his arms around Dan’s middle, feeling the firm body underneath the soft robe, and held Dan close. 

The hug didn’t last long before Dan pulled back and let go. He immediately began talking about how he had his next photoset already planned and what he had in mind. Phil was listening intently to all of what Dan had to say until Dan mentioned the words ‘fucked out’. 

“I’m sorry what?” 

Dan backtracked. “I was just saying that my next photoshoot should be one where I’m all fucked out. I like doing those ones.” 

If Phil was drinking anything, he would have choked. He wasn’t obviously, but if he _was_ , he would have spewed it all over the floor. Because Dan was going to be the _death_ of him. 

“So are you going to get a Tinder hook up or…” 

“Well, that’s the thing.” Dan began. “I don’t obviously want you being here _if_ I was going to invite over a Tinder hook up because that would be really weird for you to be here while I was having sex. I actually don’t think I’d like that at all.” Dan crinkled his nose. 

“So…” Phil pursed his lips. “Where does that leave this?” 

“Phil…” Dan began. “Would you like to have sex with me?” 

* * * 

Phil thrust deeply into Dan one last time, his head falling into the dip between Dan’s neck and shoulder. One of his hands was gripping the pillow above Dan’s head and the other was holding onto Dan’s hips so firmly that surely he was bruising them and leaving marks. But Dan was so gone under him, eyes shut and head thrown to the side as he moaned out Phil’s name and came between their stomach, cum streaking their skin. 

Phil loved this. He shouldn’t. But he does. The complete and total bliss he feels as he  climaxes. It’s like an addiction. He can’t get enough of the pure pleasure he feels. And Dan is more than willing to give him his fix. 

The sex started a few days after the first shoot. Phil almost didn’t agree to it. He’d never had sex outside of a relationship before so the mention of casual sex for the sake of Dan’s porn blog was something that made him uneasy at first. 

But then he showed up the night Dan wanted him to. And it was so easy. So fast. So good. Dan rode him so well, fucking himself so good and all it took was that one time for Phil to become drunk on Dan’s body. 

Phil lifted his head from the nape of Dan’s neck and looked down at the doe eyed man beneath him. Dan’s eyes were half-lidded and a smirk was played on his lips. His arms that were thrown around Phil’s back were loosening and moving in slow rhythms over Phil’s spine. 

“It gets better every time.” Dan says, his voice hoarse. Phil has to smile to himself because _he_ did that. He made Dan moan so loudly that he lost his voice and has trouble speaking for a while following sex. It’s a massive ego boost for him and he loves it. 

Phil nodded in agreement, letting out a soft sigh. 

The high always was hard to come down from but he knew that by laying here, he wasn’t coming down any faster. He eventually untangled himself from Dan and sat back, pulling his softening cock slowly out of Dan. Dan winced, but he always did. Oversensitive. 

He pulled off the soiled condom and tied it off, throwing it in the bin next to Dan’s bed with practiced ease. Next, he collapsed next to Dan and let Dan roll into him. One thing he learned very quickly was that Dan loved affection. Phil was actually pretty sure he craved it. So he got used to having very intimate cuddles with Dan following anything sexual that they did. He figures that the closeness helps Dan out. 

While Dan is nearly asleep on his chest, Phil takes the time to grab his camera from the bedside table where he kept it. He turned it on and snapped some photos of Dan. He loved taking photos of him like this. Dan might have mentioned that these photos were his own favorite but Phil thinks that he likes them just a little bit more. 

He’s left a few hickeys on Dan’s neck and collarbone. They’re dark, and look rather angry and he cringes at that. He knew he was sucking on Dan’s neck and leaving marks but he didn’t realize he’d made them that dark. Dan just tastes so good and sounds so good that it’s hard to stop once he’s begun. 

Dan’s already long asleep by the time Phil is done photographing him. His soft whimpers and little puffs of breath against Phil’s bare chest is enough to make Phil’s heart swell. He looks down, eyeing the dark curly hair on the top of Dan’s head, slightly matted down with sweat but still so soft and fluffy. He runs his hands through it gently, letting himself get lost in this feeling of euphoria. 

Dan wakes up about an hour later. He’s slightly disoriented but Phil doesn’t mind because Dan always is like this. It takes him a moment to get back inside his own head. They order dinner together and Phil shows Dan the photos he took and Dan smiles brightly, because he always loves them. 

Then Phil says his goodbye, like he always does, and he tells Dan that he’ll see him in class the next day and he leaves. It hurts more and more every time he leaves Dan’s apartment. He wants to stay, keep kissing him and loving him and giving him everything he wanted in the world. 

But he knows that isn’t what Dan wants. Dan wants the aesthetic of an authentic porn blog. He wants to be fucked and to show he was fucked and have people _eat up_ on that. 

When he gets back to his dorm, he logs onto Tumblr, like he always does when he’s done at Dan’s. He scrolls through Dan’s blog and looks at the photos he’s taken, looks at the amount of notes on each photos, some of them breaching 10,000. And he feels proud. He did that. He’s giving Dan exactly what he wants even if Phil is beginning to want _more._

He’s just about to fall asleep when he gets a text from Dan. 

_Same time on Saturday?_

And of course, Phil says ‘yes’. And he’s back to thinking about how he can’t wait to feel that euphoria all over again. 

* * * 

It’s a month later. Dan is straddled over Phil, riding him, moving his hips back forth and dragging Phil against his private inner walls. Phil’s loving it. His back sat against the headboard of Dan’s bed as their heaving chests touch. Their lips are near touching, brushing against the others. Phil seals them together, something that he does often but never this heated. Never with this much passion. 

His hands climb up Dan’s back and his nail rake lines down the sides. Dan whimpers and moans into his mouth before he pulls back and rests his forehead against Phil’s. 

They stare into each others eyes and it’s strangely intimate. Phil almost feels uncomfortable with it. _Almost._ But Dan breaks the eye contact to sit back and still his hips, making Phil ache with need. 

“What are you—don’t stop!” Phil pleaded, his hands moved down to Dan’s hips and tried to get them to move but Dan wasn’t budging. 

“I have a question.” Dan asked, his chest heaving and his voice near breathless. 

“Can it wait?” Phil asks, his hips moving on their own accord, chasing the pleasure again as he lifts up and thrusts deep into Dan. Dan gasps and his head lolls back for a moment before he catches himself and stills again. 

“No.” He says firmly. “I was wondering if I could take photos of us.” 

Phil’s hips stopped then and remained still. His hands tightened their grip on Dan’s body and he felt tense. “What?” 

“Can I take photos of us…having sex, for my blog?” Dan asks, biting his lip. “I won’t show anything of yours. Not your face. Not your dick. It’s just me and your body.” 

Phil feels slight whiplash. This was a lot to spring on him right now. Plus, his head was clouded and he wasn’t sure if his brain could get out of it’s sex induced euphoria long enough to think about this seriously. 

“I won’t do it if you don’t want to. But I just think that we work and look so good together, Phil.” Dan’s hands moved to around Phil’s neck, loosely hanging there. “Don’t you agree? My body and your body, connected as one. Intertwined.” 

Dan’s hips began to move again, knocking the breath from Phil’s chest. 

Phil tried to make sense of Dan’s question in his head. Logically, Phil should say no because that’s still him, naked, on the internet. But he can’t say no. Because this is Dan and he _loves_ Dan. Even if Dan isn’t in love with him, Phil can still feel it. And he’d do anything to make Dan happy. 

“We can do it.” Phil says, his voice breaking. “Just don’t get my face or my dick or anything like that.” 

Dan moans out and Phil feels him contract around him as the hot liquid of Dan’s release splatters his core. He cums nearly instantly, knowing he made Dan orgasm from just saying okay to something like that. 

Dan takes photos of Phil laying down, still inside him. He takes photos of Phil’s chest, covered in cum and he takes photos of himself from the waist down, still sat on Phil’s hips. 

When they’ve recovered and both cleaned up and dressed, Dan shows Phil the photos for approval. Phil has to agree that they look amazing and he tells Dan exactly that. But when Dan kisses Phil’s cheek and rests on his chest as he uploads the photos via his phone onto the blog, Phil begins to have a sinking feeling about agreeing to it. 

Phil leaves to go home around midnight, the longest he’s ever stayed at Dan’s. He gets back to his dorm about ten minutes later and he fins himself scrolling through Dan’s blog again, checking to see how well their photos are doing. Dan’s captioned their photos together with a black heart and nothing more. For some reason, that makes Phil’s heart beat just a little bit faster. 

He goes to exit the app when he decides, for one more good measure, to refresh Dan’s blog and see if their post has any more notes. But instead of their photos being the first things appearing on Dan’s blog, it’s an ask instead. It’s from someone who is anonymous. It reads: 

_Damn, is that your boyfriend in that photo? What a lucky guy._

And Phil’s heart shatters when he reads the answer from Dan. 

_No! He’s just a friend with benefits. :)_

* * * 

Phil doesn’t speak with Dan for a few days. Not in class. Not through text. When Dan texts him about he next time he wants to do a photoshoot, Phil tells Dan that he has plans with his family. He doesn’t. Dan picks up on Phil’s odd behaviour relatively fast and Phil doesn’t know if he hates that or is grateful for it because he doesn’t want to stay this way forever. 

Phil agrees to visit Dan at his apartment for just talking that Saturday. It’s the first time that they’ve ever done anything like this. Just talking to Dan was frankly a little intimidating for Phil. 

When he arrived, Dan answered the door in a pair of black sweatpants and an oversized sweatshirt. He’s never seen Dan look this casual but he’s okay with it. Dan let’s him in and they sit on Dan’s couch and Phil has a hard time sitting there without thinking of all of their promiscuous things that they’ve done on here. 

“We need to talk.” Phil begins. 

Dan nods, his eyebrows furrowing together. 

“I don’t think I can do this anymore.” The words exit Phil’s mouth so fast that he has no time to catch them. 

“Do what anymore?” Dan asks, a definite sadness lacing his voice. 

“The sex. The photoshoots. The friends with benefits thing…I can’t do it anymore.” 

Dan nods slowly, but that still doesn’t stop Phil from noticing the way his eyes get glassy. He’s suddenly scared that Dan’s going to cry now. He doesn’t want Dan to cry. 

“Why?” 

“Dan,” Phil begins, “it’s destroying me.” He answers truthfully. “The sex is amazing and you’re a great person but I can’t keep doing this. I can’t keep being with you without _being_ with you.” 

Dan cocks his head to the side. “I don’t understand?” 

Phil can feel it. The word’s are sitting on his tongue and he’s about to say it. He’s about to blow his cover and admit everything to Dan. “I really like you. Not just in a sexual way, but in a real way. I want to date you. I want us to be more than just good sex. I want a relationship with you, not a friends with benefits thing.” 

“You want to be my boyfriend?” Dan asks, his voice wavering. 

Phil nods, feeling his eyes burn at unshed tears starting to come forth. He knows he’s going to start crying when Dan’s rejects him. But he’s trying to swallow his pride now while he still has it. 

“Yes.” Phil says. “Ever since I saw you walk into class on the first day, I knew I wanted you. You’re everything I’ve wanted in a partner. I never thought in a million years I’d ever get a chance with you but—”

“—I’d love to be your boyfriend!” 

Dan’s words are spewed out so fast that Phil can’t catch them. 

“What?” 

“I said that I’d love to be your boyfriend.” 

Phil feels his heart soar. “You do…?” 

Dan nods, a stray tear leaked out of his eye, falling down his cheek and Phil knows it’s from a mixture of happiness and relief. “Yes! I’ve been wanting to be with you for so long. I just thought that since we agreed with this friends with benefits thing along with you doing my shoots that _you_ just wanted to be more professional than anything.” 

Phil lets out a shallow laugh of disbelief. “I can’t believe this.” 

Dan nods and chuckles as well and he wipes his cheek. “That feels so good to say.” 

Phil laughs, loud and hearty, as he nods. “You have no idea.” 

They both sit in silence. Phil’s unsure if he’s even awake right now or if this is just a dream. The sudden feeling of Dan’s gentle fingers on his cheek are enough to get him to turn his head to face him. Dan’s smiling at him, one of his genuine smiles that makes Phil’s heart melt even more. 

Dan leans in first and Phil catches him in the middle. It’s not their first kiss, but it’s one that means a lot more than just being authentic to Dan’s blog. 

They continue kissing for a while, just exploring each others mouths before they decide to go further. The sex is different. It’s not as romantic as it should be: it happens on the floor of Dan’s living room. But it’s nicer because it means a lot more. 

This time, when they’re done, they don’t take any photos. Well, not any nude photos. Dan takes a few selfies of him and Phil together and Phil melts as he hides his face in Dan’s hair. They laugh and they kiss and they’re happy. They’re really _fucking_ happy. 

Phil spends the night that night, the first night of many if his inclinations are correct. When Dan’s asleep, he decides to go under Dan’s blog again, one more time because he knows that his _boyfriend_ is still gonna post on there and he’s okay with that. 

But instead, he’s greeted with a photo of him and Dan, his face not in sight, laying together post-sex in one of their failed selfie attempts. The photo is enough to make Phil’s heart burst but the caption is enough to reassure him of his true feelings. 

 _I’m wearing the smile he gave me_. 

Yeah, it was love. It was real love. And as he looked at the sleeping form next to him, he decided he was gonna let Dan know that really soon. 

**Author's Note:**

> Don't forget to comment and leave kudos, letting me know how much you liked this fic! 
> 
> *I also prefer to not have constructive criticism given to me but I WILL take any feedback you want to give me otherwise!*


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